Psychology 1000-650
Introduction to Psychology
If there is a discrepancy between the outline posted below and the outline posted on the OWL course website, the latter shall prevail.
1.0 CALENDAR DESCRIPTION
An introductory survey of the methods and findings of modern scientific psychology. The following topics will be covered: history and methodology, biological psychology, sensation and perception, learning and motivation, verbal and cognitive processes, developmental psychology, social psychology, individual differences (intelligence and personality), and clinical psychology.
Antirequisites: Psychology 1100E, the former Psychology 1200
Antirequisites are courses that overlap sufficiently in content that only one can be taken for credit. So if this course has an antirequisite that you have previously taken, you will lose credit for the earlier course, regardless of the grade achieved in this one.
1.0 course
2.0 COURSE INFORMATION
Instructor: Dr. Shelley Cross-Mellor
Office: 8210 SSC
Office Hours: By appointment
Email: scrossme@uwo.caIf you or someone you know is experiencing distress, there are several resources here at Western to assist you. Please visit: http://www.uwo.ca/uwocom/mentalhealth/ for more information on these resources and on mental health.
Please contact the course instructor if you require material in an alternate format or if you require any other arrangements to make this course more accessible to you. You may also wish to contact Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) at 519-661-2111 ext 82147 for any specific question regarding an accommodation.
3.0 TEXTBOOK
Passer, Smith, Atkinson, Mitchell, and Muir. (2017). Psychology: Frontiers and Applications, Sixth Canadian Edition. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson Limited.
4.0 COURSE OBJECTIVES
This course is an introductory level survey of the methods and findings of modern scientific psychology. The goal is to provide students with an overview of various topic domains within the realm of psychology. As such, students will be exposed to diverse theoretical viewpoints and various methods and procedures for the scientific investigation of psychological issues. Note: Modern psychology is scientific in nature. Consequently, we will spend a lot of time discussing science-related topics such as research design, neural functioning, sensory mechanisms, brain structure, etc.
4.1 STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
Each chapter in the text covers a major interest area in psychology. By the end of this course, the successful student will be able to:
o Identify the major concepts, theories and topics in Psychology
o Distinguish between and identify the relative strengths and weaknesses of various theories in Psychology
o Apply concepts and theories from Psychology to everyday problems
o Interpret statistical information presented in tables or graphs
o Ask questions about topics in Psychology
o Apply DSM criteria to provide the most plausible diagnosis for a set of psychological problems
o Identify common research designs used in Psychology
|
Learning Outcome |
Learning Activity |
Assessment |
|
Identify major concepts, theories, and topics in Psychology |
Reading & viewing video lectures |
Multiple choice exams |
|
Distinguish between and identify the relative strengths and weaknesses of various theories in Psychology |
Reading & viewing video lectures |
Multiple choice exams |
|
Apply concepts and theories from Psychology to everyday problems |
Reading & viewing video lectures |
Multiple choice exams |
|
Ask questions about topics in Psychology and answering others questions. |
Online discussions |
Quality of posted questions & answers to others questions |
|
Interpret statistical information presented in tables or graphs |
Reading & viewing video lectures |
Multiple choice exams |
|
Apply DSM criteria to provide the most plausible diagnosis for a set of psychological symptoms |
Reading & viewing video lectures |
Multiple choice exams |
|
Identify common research designs used in Psychology |
Reading & viewing video lectures |
Multiple choice exams |
5.0 EVALUATION
There will THREE non-cumulative exams during the course worth 25%, 35%, and 35% respectively. The first exam test is set for Saturday May 26 at 2pm. The second exam is set for Saturday July 7 at 2pm. The final exam will be scheduled by the Registrar’s office between July 30-August 2. Exact times and rooms will be posted on our OWL site once they are finalized by the Registrar’s Office. The first exam will consist of 75 multiple choice questions while remaining two exams will be 100 multiple choice questions. Exams will be based on the material found in the text as well as the video lectures (see below).
There is also an online discussion (under “Forums” on OWL). You will be assigned to a group of approximately 20-25 students and you will need to go online and discuss specific issues about a video that will be assigned for you to view. The online discussion will be open for one week. The marking scheme will be posted on our OWL site.
The online discussion will run from Monday June 18 – Sunday June 24
EVALUATION SUMMARY
Exam # 1: 25% (Chapters 1-4 + Appendix & Video Lectures)
Exam #2: 35% (Chapters 5-11 & Video Lectures)
Exam #3: 35% (Chapters 12-17 & Video Lectures)
Online Discussion - 5%
Although the Psychology Department does not require instructors to adjust their course grades to conform to specific targets, the expectation is that course marks will be distributed around the following averages:
70% 1000-level and 2000-level courses
72% 2190-2990 level courses
75% 3000-level courses
80% 4000-level courses
The Psychology Department follows Western's grading guidelines, which are as follows (see http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/general/grades_undergrad.pdf):
A+ 90-100 One could scarcely expect better from a student at this level
A 80-89 Superior work that is clearly above average
B 70-79 Good work, meeting all requirements, and eminently satisfactory
C 60-69 Competent work, meeting requirements
D 50-59 Fair work, minimally acceptable
F below 50 Fail
6.0 TEST AND EXAMINATION SCHEDULE
Test 1: 25% - Saturday May 26, 2018 – Chapters 1-4 + Appendix & Video Lectures
Test 2: 35% - Saturday July 7, 2018 – Chapters 5-11 & Video Lectures
Test 3: 35% - TBA: July 30-August 2, 2018 – Chapters 12-17 & Video Lectures
Online Discussion: Monday June 18 – Sunday June 24
7.0 CLASS SCHEDULE
Topics will be covered in the following order during the course. “Lecture dates” are given so that you can keep up with the readings, but of course, you can access the lectures in any order and time frame you like. Lectures are intended to highlight certain areas of each topic -- there is not enough time available to cover all the material. However, you are responsible for all the material in the text. Please note that there is a fairly heavy reading load in this course – you will need to cover approximately at least one chapter every 4 - 5 days. Thus, it is important for you to keep up with the readings.
First day of classes: May 7, 2018
|
WEEK |
END DATE |
SUGGESTED READINGS & VIDEO LECTURES |
|
Week 1 |
May 11, 2018 |
Chapters 1, 2 & Appendix |
|
Week 2 |
May 18, 2018 |
Chapters 3, 4 |
|
Week 3 |
May 25, 2018 |
Chapter 5 |
|
Week 4 |
June 1, 2018 |
Chapter 6 |
|
Week 5 |
June 8, 2018 |
Chapter 7 |
|
Week 6 |
June 15, 2018 |
Chapter 8 |
|
Week 7 |
June 22, 2018 |
Chapters 9 & 10 |
|
Week 8 |
June 29, 2018 |
Chapter 11 |
|
Week 9 |
July 6, 2018 |
Chapter 12 |
|
Week 10 |
July 13, 2018 |
Chapter 13 |
|
Week 11 |
July 20, 2018 |
Chapters 14 & 15 |
|
Week 12 |
July 27, 2018 |
Chapters 16 & 17 |
8.0 STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC OFFENCES
Students are responsible for understanding the nature and avoiding the occurrence of plagiarism and other scholastic offenses. Plagiarism and cheating are considered very serious offenses because they undermine the integrity of research and education. Actions constituting a scholastic offense are described at the following link: http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/scholastic_discipline_undergrad.pdf
As of Sept. 1, 2009, the Department of Psychology will take the following steps to detect scholastic offenses. All multiple-choice tests and exams will be checked for similarities in the pattern of responses using reliable software, and records will be made of student seating locations in all tests and exams. All written assignments will be submitted to TurnItIn, a service designed to detect and deter plagiarism by comparing written material to over 5 billion pages of content located on the Internet or in TurnItIn’s databases. All papers submitted for such checking will be included as source documents in the reference database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of papers subsequently submitted to the system. Use of the service is subject to the licensing agreement, currently between Western and Turnitin.com http://www.turnitin.com
Possible penalties for a scholastic offense include failure of the assignment, failure of the course, suspension from the University, and expulsion from the University.
9.0 POLICY ON ACCOMMODATION FOR MEDICAL ILLNESS
Western’s policy on Accommodation for Medical Illness can be found at:
http://westerncalendar.uwo.ca/PolicyPages.cfm?Command=showCategory&PolicyCategoryID=1&SelectedCalendar=Live&ArchiveID=#Page_12
Students must see the Academic Counsellor and submit all required documentation in order to be approved for certain accommodation:
http://counselling.ssc.uwo.ca/procedures/medical_accommodation.html
10.0 OTHER INFORMATION
Office of the Registrar web site: http://registrar.uwo.ca
Student Development Services web site: http://www.sdc.uwo.ca
Please see the Psychology Undergraduate web site for information on the following:
http://psychology.uwo.ca/undergraduate/student_responsibilities/index.html
- Policy on Cheating and Academic Misconduct
- Procedures for Appealing Academic Evaluations
- Policy on Attendance
- Policy Regarding Makeup Exams and Extensions of Deadlines
- Policy for Assignments
- Short Absences
- Extended Absences
- Documentation
- Academic Concerns
- 2018 Calendar References
No electronic devices, including cell phones and smart watches, will be allowed during exams.
